Sunday Fun Version 9.1.13

Adella finally got a new handmade dress and I thought it was only appropriate that Charlie get some cute stuff too!  But seriously, they were having no part of getting their pics taken.  Can't these kids understand I need them to stand in the right light and stand still???

 Waking up is seriously hard, especially on Sunday's.  But somehow our hat and some snacks make things mostly better. 

 Milk helps a lot too

Charlie's Hat

Charlie loves his hats!   Recently has figured out how to get them on himself, which is so nice!  He used to ask for them to be on, then pull them off and scream and this cycle would go on and on and on!   But the funny thing is, he likes to put his hat on and then pull it all the way down over his eyes.   It's so strange and I don't know how he can see anything, but that's the way he likes it!

 Suprise!

 And then, apparently one day his hat was in his crib for nap time, I opened the door to go get them and couldn't help but laugh when I saw this!

Baby Shower for Paisley

I threw a small baby shower for my friend Paisley on Saturday.  It was her third baby, but first girl so I figured she NEEDED to have some girly things!  We made it a super small party with only about 10-12 people coming.  I went very light on decorations (only using things I already had) and I did a do it yourself salad bar!  My sister in law Alisa gave me the idea and I LOVED it!  It was so perfect!  I went to Winco and grabbed up anything from the bulk bins that I thought would make a good topping. We already have lettuce and spinach in our home all the time and I just had to add a few more veggies and we were set!  I also had some plain pasta too.  I made 3 dressings, BBQ Ranch, Oriental, and Italian.   The Oriental was a big hit, if you want to try it it's super easy and only 4 ingredients - Mayo, Honey, Sesame Oil and Rice Wine Vinegar.  Here's the link to where I found it. http://saorganics.com/applebees-oriental-salad/      I just realized looking back at it that it also calls for mustard, I didn't put any in because I'm not a big mustard fan and it's delicious without it!!

 I was able to prep and cut up all the vegetables, make the dressing and pasta's all the day before.  All I had to do was set everything out!  I even had gotten my dishes out and put sticky notes in them with all my topping so I knew I had a place for everything!

At the last minute I got the idea to put the dressings into squeeze bottles and it might just be my new favorite thing!  Seriously try it!   I had these laying around and hadn't used them much, but they are perfect for dressing.  You are really able to squeeze such a thin line that you can put all over your salad and get good coverage!  And it's not messy! 

The best part was is that all the leftovers are things we would actually eat and are mostly healthy!  I have stuff for salads for days and can mix it up!

I also did an Italian Soda bar.  I LOVE Italian Soda's and already had the syrups and cream and since we had the Soda Stream I didn't even have to buy soda!

See, super simple - not my usual all out party, but it was still very nice!

I wasn't in the mood for doing cupcakes or other extensive desserts, so I made cookie dough earlier in the week, portioned it out and froze it.  Then just popped them in the oven that morning (the ONLY thing I had to cook!) and put them in these little treat bags.  It was perfect - people took one as they were leaving (or some as they came in!)  and I wasn't left with an overabundance of treats laying around!

This was seriously one of my favorite menu's for a party and I KNOW I will be using it again!  Everyone really loved it it was so easy!

Ready for cutting!

I'm getting ready to make Alisa's new babies quilt! I just LOVE making blankets/quilts for my new nieces and nephews.  Picking out fabric and patterns is always fun!  So here's my latest stack ready to cut!

The Story of the Racoon

Adam's parents and his brother Isaac will especially appreciate this story.

Adella, we have noticed, is VERY particular about things being a certain way.  She's likes to organize things and there are just certain things that have to be the way she wants them!  One of those is her bed.  She only want certain things in there - and she HAS to have those things!   For the longest time neither Charlie or Adella were attached to any 'lovies' or other blankies or toys for bedtime, but then all of a sudden Adella especially got hooked on her 'buggie' as we call it (it's a tiny blankie with an animal on one corner, we have no idea what kind of animal it is, it looks like a bug, so that's it's name!  Charlie's is obviously a sheep so it's called sheepie!)

Adam used to tease Adella and throw random stuffed animals or blankets in her bed and she would just chuck them right back out as soon as she got in.  He once even put Charlie in and that did not go well!  

So it was very surprising when one day we brought out this little guy and put it in her bed and she left it!   She seriously loves this little guy!

Now it may not seem like anything special, but you see this is a raccoon.  And when Adam was little one of his favorite possession was a stuffed raccoon too!  When his brother Isaac came along, he was so happy to have a brother after dealing with two sisters, he lovingly game up his precious possession to him. 

Adella is a total daddy's girl, so it's no wonder she would have the same taste in stuffed toys as her daddy!